After the release of Chimp Crazy, Haddix confessed to a reporter that she planned to illegally circumvent any potential license revocation by the USDA by conducting business through someone else’s license.
Sunrise Beach, Mo. — Following years of PETA pressure, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has finally terminated Tonia Haddix’s federal license, banning her from legally selling USDA-regulated animals, including primates, and operating her roadside zoo in Sunrise Beach, Missouri. But the notorious wild animal broker—who lied in federal court about Tonka the chimpanzee’s death to prevent him from being transported to an accredited sanctuary—previously indicated that she may defy federal authorities.
After the release of Chimp Crazy, Haddix confessed to a reporter that she planned to illegally circumvent any potential license revocation by the USDA by conducting business through someone else’s license. To ensure that doesn’t happen, PETA is offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who comes forward to PETA with verifiable evidence of her license circumvention that leads to federal administrative liability or criminal convictions.
“Tonia Haddix locked a highly social chimpanzee inside a tiny cage in her basement and repeatedly lied under oath to keep him in her clutches,” says PETA Foundation General Counsel Brittany Peet. “The USDA did the right thing to stop Haddix from hurting more animals, and PETA will ensure she stays on the right side of the law or else face the consequences.”
PETA sent multiple complaints to the USDA and met with the agency several times urging it to terminate Haddix’s license. An internal USDA email that PETA received revealed that the agency found Haddix unfit to hold the license as far back as September 27, 2023. PETA notes that Haddix is still facing looming federal criminal charges for contempt of court and is under investigation for perjury following her actions in PETA’s case against her, which were documented in Chimp Crazy.
Haddix’s license termination is scheduled to take effect April 22 if she doesn’t appeal the USDA’s order, and it will disqualify her from holding a license to exhibit and sell USDA-regulated animals for two years.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
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